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The closure nearly four years ago of the mighty Komati power station, located in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga, stands out as an example of how not to handle the transition to cleaner energy.
“As part of South Africa’s international commitment to reduce carbon emissions, Komati became the test case for the country’s transition to clean energy,” says podcast narrator Melusi Ncala. The last unit at Komati was switched off in October 2022 when the station was chosen as the testing ground for this country’s Just Energy Transition Partnership, a collaboration between the governments of South Africa, France, Germany, the UK, the US, and the EU.
According to a later investigation of the process by the Presidential Climate Commission later, serious engagement with workers only began in May – just five months earlier. “Community members spoke of poor communication, a lack of transparency, and an absence of meaningful consultation,” says Ncala. “The so called just transition felt to them anything but just.”
The CGI team visited eMalahleni as well as Mokopane, Limpopo, to speak with communities and get their view on how climate change is affecting them, and what assistance – if any – they are receiving from official sources, whether public or private. “In eMalahleni, services appear to have ground to a halt despite intense mining activity. Poverty is widespread. Dust clouds the air, coal stains the streets, and water quality is poor. In an area so rich in resources, the neglect is striking,” says Ncala. In Mokopane too, communities have seen little benefit since mining began.
Since the Komati shut-down, communities around the mining areas located in the vicinity have felt abandoned. Despite promises from the government, they feel left to fend for themselves, having to walk farther to fetch water, exposed to pollution, and with reduced economic options.
Meanwhile, other communities around the country are suffering in extreme heat conditions, linked to climate change and inadequate aid, while municipal officials and tenderpreneurs are slow to account for lack of meaningful spending and progress.
In this episode we chat about responsible managing of climate-related budgets and projects, weak governance structures which hinder the effective implementation of climate policies and community support programs, deficiencies in the Climate Change Act, and more. Our guests include climate sustainability expert Professor Imran Valodia of Wits University; legal researcher Mashudu Masutha; climate science writer and journalist Leonie Joubert; Bongani Johannes from Mining Affected Communities United in Action; Malik Dasoo, a researcher with Extinction Rebellion; and community voices from Limpopo and Mpumalanga, including Grace, Mam’Nkuna, and Sinki.
Listen to episode 3 below, or download it by right-clicking or long-pressing on the audio player:
